UPDATE 1-S.Korea retailers halt US beef sales, govt may act

SEOUL, April 25 Two major South Korean retailers
halted sales of U.S. beef after an outbreak of mad cow disease
as the country's agriculture ministry looked set to move towards
banning quarantine inspections, a move that would effectively
end imports.

Lotte Mart, a unit of Lotte Shopping Co., said
it had suspended sales due to what it said was "customer
concerns", as did Home Plus, a unit of Britain's Tesco PLC
.

South Korea imported imported 107,000 tonnes of U.S. beef
last year, or 37 percent of total imports, according to
agriculture ministry data.

Officials at the ministry said an outright import ban was
unlikely.

"We need to find out what exactly happened in the U.S...We
will make a decision soon over necessary measures," a spokesman
at the Korean agriculture ministry said.

"It won't be an import ban, but possibly a quarantine
suspension."

Shares in the fisheries and chicken industries jumped, with
Dongwon Fisheries spiking 10.3 percent as of 0203
GMT.

South Korea banned imports of American beef in 2003
following an outbreak of mad cow disease but eased the ban later
by allowing imports of boneless beef from cattle younger than 30
months.

U.S. authorities reported the country's first case of mad
cow disease in six years on Tuesday and swiftly assured
consumers and global importers that there was no danger of meat
from the California dairy cow entering the food
chain.

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